Giada's Eggplant Timbale

A little more work than I thought and completely out of my comfort zone, but I got through the recipe, phew!

Here is the recipe for our scrumptious 49er dinner tonight! I must say mine turned out nothing like the picture in my cookbook of Giada making it, but all that matters is it tasted good, right?!?!?!

Eggplant Timbale

~Dinner Date at home~

Saturday Night Menu: Rib-Eye Steak with Black Olive Vinaigrette and Orzo Salad with Fresh Citrus and Red Onion. (courtesy of the fabulous and much loved in this house, Giada DeLaurentiis)

I have to say before anything else, as I took my first bite of this amazing rib-eye dish, I said to my husband "that is gourmet right there!" I am no chef, but I do LOVE to cook since moving to Madison in 2010! I enjoy making new recipes and trying them! I find it relaxing and stress-relieving.....when I am not under a time limit like tonight...Nick was ditching me and meeting up with the men for a "guys' night!"

This pic is the hubby's portion of steak as mine was much smaller! I couldn't imagine eating that much steak! I think I'd collapse from a heart attack! The steak was absolutely amazing, thanks to the hubby's skills on the grill in below zero temps! The vinaigrette was absolutely delicious.....I was unsure about pureed black olives and dijon and red wine vinegar, etc....but it was absolutely to die for. I ended up putting the left overs in a tupperware :) I highly recommend this recipe even if you don't like black olives!

The Orzo salad called for Fregola, (an Italian toasted semolina pasta, similar to pearled couscous) but since I wanted to get more nutrition into our meal, (like I always do) I opted for whole wheat Orzo....mmmm, one of my favorite Italian pastas! So versatile and fun to eat. So, this salad was delicious as well, but....yes there is a but......I believe the certain individual in charge of thinly slicing the medium (that happened to be large since there was not a medium one at the store) red onion did not slice them thin enough and used too much of the quite strong onion......WOOPS! That's probably why my eyes looked like I'd been crying for hours on end! I think it will be better today after it has marinated in the mint, basil leaves, orange, grapefruit and olive oil :) We shall see when lunchtime comes around....or maybe I will save it for a little snack during the 49er game today!!!

All in all, this dinner was quite amazing and I did give myself a pat on the back as well as the hubs because he did help quite a lot......and even helped with the dishes before darting out the house to have a guys' night....whatever that entailed I have no idea! It was a yummy dinner together, nonetheless :)

You can find these recipes on Giada's website, too. I now own a Giada cookbook thanks to Nick's lovely parents for giving it to us for Xmas when they were here at Thanksgiving. I am getting quite a lot of use out of it. I may have a little bit of a crush on Giada for more than a few reasons.....after all she is flippin gorgeous! My husband might have another certain word for her that is not blog appropriate.....but she is AMAZING and I love her recipes!!!! Enjoy!

Maison T. Ortiz, we remember you today!

A year ago today, a handsome gentle giant became our Angel. We miss you more every day, Mai. We have watched your family be as strong as they possibly can during the toughest year of their lives. We love you so much and will be strong for you today as we think of the beautiful memories we have together from weekends at Lake Almanor and the amazing time when I got to go to Cabo with you, your family, and the Zaccheos to babysit you kids! It was such a fun trip and I will always hold those memories dear to my heart. The last words you said to me at my wedding were some of the strongest words I will ever remember. You hugged me on the dance floor after Nick and I got married and said "I can really tell you are happy Jordo. Nick seems like such a great guy and I'm glad I am here to see you celebrate your wedding day, you were always the funnest babysitter!" Thanks for all the memories, sweet Maison. We miss you so much today! xoxoxoxo

Job Title: Nanny

Days like today remind me why I feel as though I have the best job in the world!

I have my degree in Human Development and Family Studies, with an emphasis on Early Childhood. One would ask what you do with this degree. Simply put, I play with children all day and find so much pride and happiness in it.

I have worked in many child cares in the Reno area while going through college to pay for books, rent, food, etc. You know how it goes. At one point I was working at 3 different ones. I have no idea why, that's just what I did to fill up my schedule in between classes I guess. I wouldn't take it back for anything. I see each job I had as an amazing experience. Some learning the hard way, some learning amazing skills through amazing head teachers I was so fortunate to work with. The job I miss the most was surprisingly a desk job, working behind the scenes of the child care world. If you know me at all, you know that never in my life did I think I would like a desk job, but it was some of the most rewarding and self-gratifying experiences I've been through in life thus far. Not only did I work with an amazing staff and boss, but got to see first hand the immense amount of work that goes into keeping child cares up to the level of professionalism they need to be! It's a lot of work and a lot of people put many hours into making it up to par :)

Anywho....when Nick and I moved to Madison I knew I had to get a job FAST! We needed to pay for rent and get some cushion if we were going to survive this so-called residency path we had never been down before. I got a job at a day care and soon found out it was HORRIBLE and not the path I wanted for our new little life here in this gorgeous city! I soon decided nannying was what I would want to pursue(I had only done it one summer in Reno)......from that point on I have never looked back. I have truly found my niche and what I love to do with my spare time in this crazy thing called life. Going through a few ups and downs here and there, I am now nannying for an amazing family. I have almost been with them for a year in a few months and that makes me smile from ear to ear because there hasn't been a day I have woken up and said "I don't want to go to work today." Probably because my work does not feel like work at all. Probably because this family treats me as one of them and shows appreciation more than I ever thought was possible. Probably because I love them equally as much as they love me! I do what I love and I love what I do :):):)

It's days like today that I am reminded what it's like to live life through the eyes of a child at 1 year! Today as I played with little lady in the snow, I was reminded why I have the best job in the world. She looked to me for guidance while she walked in the 3 inches of snow with her clunky snow boots on! She mumbled in her language as she played in the cold white stuff. It was music to my ears! She was so happy to be in the snow, eating it (her favorite), touching it, making snow angels with my help, even putting her face in it! Today was truly a great day at work and I feel like this most days as I walk out the door after I give kisses, an I love you and a goodbye.

Today, like every day of my work as a nanny, is simply happiness at its finest because I am learning about my world through the eyes of a baby. Exactly what I believe I was put here to do on earth. Some may say it is not a job, but that is OK, because to me that is not an insult...that is a compliment!! I believe it to be the best job title in the world! It is quite amazing.....which makes me that much more excited for parenthood when we walk that path one day!!!

Go ahead and comment on the cuteness of this little lady! It's ok because I fall more and more in love with her every day! With every slobbery kiss, contagious giggle, intensely loud squeal, and hilarious personality, you are hard to not love, little miss!

Pictures-I am not one to post photos of children/families I work with/for because I believe in the privacy of the family....and professionalism. I believe this photo of Sidney still gives privacy to this family as it does not show her whole face. I will never post a picture of her face, so please do not ask me to. If you feel this picture shows too much of her identity, please let me know. I will remove it if needed. Thank you. Enjoy!

Working Out

What is working out to you? Is it a stress reliever? Is it the feel good feeling you get? Does it help you sleep better? Do you worry about your self image? Is it a way to escape from life and blast music in your ears? Or is it simply a routine for you?

For me, it is all of the above except the last one.....I can hardly say working out is routine to me. Although I would love to strive for it to be. I have worked out my entire life. Well, that's a lie...not my entire life. I've worked out since I started playing soccer as a little tyke.....remember those High Sierra days at Echo Loder Elementary School where no matter which goal the ball was kick into, it was a goal...ha, I do! Anywho, I get off track easily! Since 7th grade, I have worked out for real...this was where I started running Cross country and Track. I enjoyed running for some odd reason. I loved being outside running on trails and experiencing nature on my own. I ran all through middle school, high school and into college until school took over. You ask me why? Well, I don't think I can answer that because I honestly do not know where my love for running came about. No one in my family has every been a so-called "runner" that I know of. From this point on, I discovered kickboxing since running gave me the worst shin splints in my life. The workout you get from kickboxing is like something close to amazing. You feel so good afterwards and you are just dripping with sweat! Sorry, that is too much info, but all the toxins are dripping out of your body and to me that is feeling healthy. I love it! I certainly miss the kickboxing days at Freestyle in Reno. I have yet to find a place that comes close to it! I've been to a few here, but not like what Freestyle offers :(

Since living in Madison, we have gotten a gym membership and they have various classes going all week long. I have been going with a girlfriend to the abs and glutes class every now and then, but today was the first time in a long time that I was able to go to the Wednesday class at 4: BODY SCULPT! It sounds more intimidating than it really is. It is using exercise bands, free weights, medicine balls, body bars, and your own body to tone pretty much every muscle. Arms, abs, glutes, legs, probably even ankles since we did a lot of one legged work outs today to strengthen your buttocks! Basically an all in one strength training workout in 1 hour!

I love the feeling you get after a great workout, I love that it helps me sleep better, I love that I feel energized for the rest of the day/night, and I love that I am burning calories! Now I always ask myself why can't I stick to this routine of "going to the gym" at least 4-5 days a week......I will let you know when I come up with an answer other than it is easier to be lazy than to work out! Sooooo LAME! So, I challenge you to add a day or two of working out to your schedule and gradually increase the amount of days you go each week! I love to know that I am doing my body, mind, heart, muscles, and overall health a good thing when I work out. And if you know me at all, I have a lot of passion for keeping healthy.....mainly through eating healthy, but working out is in that equation as well!

Go for a walk for 30 minutes a day....stretch as much as you can, etc. Anything can help your body stay healthy, fit and active. It is so hard to get into routine, but I know you can do it and I know we will all find a way to fit it in our busy lives. Trust me, we won't regret it later on down the road!

Also coming home and cooking is more appealing after I've worked out. Tonight was different because I despise cooking a great big meal for JUST myself when the hubby is on call. Tonight was one of those nights....call nights! So I made myself a banana and peanut butter sammy and yes I felt like a kid all over again with a treat that I splurged on for myself, an iced chai from Starbucks :) Happy Bachelor Monday to you....yes, it is my Monday ritual! So sad, but oh so true! Hope you had a beautiful day and made someone smile.

My 2 loves in life!

#1~ My handsome Hubby, Nicholas Charles. In his very festive Christmas attire!

I love you more than I ever imagined I would when we first met. You complete me, you support me, you inspire me, you give your all to me, and you show your love to me on a daily basis. I love laughing at stupid things we both do each day! Most recently: when I put my pajama top on backwards and you were so kind not to say anything until I realized why it felt so weird and you finally said "I thought your shirt looked odd!" Ending in hysterics from both of us! I haven't laughed that hard in a while! I love snuggling with you after a long day of mind numbing work for you. You know Bachelor Mondays are my favorite, even though you would rather be watching something else. I still love snuggling with you :) Thank you for being the glue that keeps us together, without you I do not know where I would be!

#2~ Our baby girl, Zoey.

I may be overly obsessed with her, but it is only because she is so cute! I take pictures of her and still do not know what to do with all of them! Maybe a Zoey book one day for our future kids to look at. I love this puppy to death. She is so snuggly when she is not showing off her ADHD side around company. She communicates more to us than I ever knew a dog could. She can go "get her Husky" when we ask....it's quite bizarre! We love her nonetheless and will continue to spoil you forever :) I love you baby girl, thank you for keeping me company when daddy is working long hours on call nights at the hospital. I will always love your kisses!

Here it goes, first blog EVER!!!

I'm new at all this, so give me a few months to figure out how it works!

Why have I decided to create a blog? Well, number one is because I spend FAR too much time on Facebook. Number two, I want to be able to share my life events with family who are not on Facebook. Number three, I have much more to say about life than a simple status can hold. Number four, the hubby has encouraged me to start a blog for some time now...I think it is partly because of my time wasted on Facebook! Whoops! You have to admit, it is addicting! Finally, I want somewhere I can bring to life my new found love of cooking, baking, and trying new recipes with fellow bloggers who share the same love I now do! Cheers to a new adventure through the blog world...I never thought I'd do it, but here it goes!

Thank you hubby for pushing me to do this! I knew when I walked down that aisle with you after we said I do that you'd support me in every dream I have! I love you!